Historedia
EuropeEvent

Beethoven composes Für Elise

When
1810
Where
Vienna; Publication location unknown
Episodes
2

Beethoven composed the bagatelle 'Für Elise' around 1810, likely in Vienna. The exact composition date remains uncertain, though a lost manuscript reportedly bore an April 1810 date. The work was not published until 1867, long after Beethoven's death. The piece remains a significant but historically ambiguous artifact of his middle period.

Episodes

  1. 1810 · ViennaComposition of Für Elise

    Beethoven composed the bagatelle 'Für Elise' around 1810, likely in Vienna, amidst reduced output due to health and political disruptions.

  2. 1867 · Publication location unknownPosthumous Publication

    The piece was published in 1867, long after Beethoven's death, based on a transcription by Ludwig Nohl.

Background and detail

Manuscript Evidence. The original autograph manuscript is lost. The discoverer, Ludwig Nohl, reported that the manuscript bore the title 'Für Elise am 27 April [1810] zur Erinnerung von L. v.' This date is often cited but is not definitively proven as the composition date. The piece was published posthumously in 1867, based on Nohl's transcription.

Publication History. The bagatelle was published in 1867, decades after Beethoven's death in 1827. The delay in publication contributes to the uncertainty surrounding its exact creation date and intended dedication. The work's fame grew significantly after its posthumous release.

People involved

Sources

  1. Für Elise Wikipedia, revision of 2026-10-02
  2. Ludwig van Beethoven Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-20

Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.